09 January,2018 04:52 PM IST | Mumbai | Suraj Ojha
The blaze may have been caused by a short circuit, according to fire officials
In the fourth major fire incident this year and the sixth in the last three weeks, a massive blaze gutted several shops along P D'Mello Road, in the Reay Road area, in the early hours of Tuesday. According to the fire department officials, who local residents alleged arrived late on the spot, a short circuit may have caused the blaze that gutted seven shops and damaged many more. The department has confirmed that no person was injured in the incident.
Speaking to mid-day, Mansur Ali Khan, whose shop Super Marine Services was gutted in the fire, said, "I stay close to the shop where the fire broke out. Around 12.20 am, we heard some noise, which sounded like firecrackers were being burnt. We came out on the streets to find huge flames emerging from the shops."
Mansur added, "We do wielding work on ships, including those of the Indian Navy. At one point, we were afraid that the cylinders kept inside the shops would cause a huge blast. But, thankfully, even before the fire tenders arrived at the spot, local residents helped us break into the shops and remove the cylinders. But, I have lost everything in the blaze."
Slow response
According to local sources, six fire tenders had arrived at the spot to douse the blaze, but they arrived late. Reay Road resident Manoj Mishra, who works at the dockyard, alleged, "The blaze started around 12 am, but when I called the fire department they listened to my issue and kept the phone on hold for a long time. Others kept trying to reach the department, too, but to no avail. Then, we called the Mumbai Police, who reached the spot within minutes. We believe that they may have alerted the fire department to react."
Locals alleged that the fire services reached the incident spot over 15 minutes late.
However, Subhash Borole, divisional fire officer at Byculla, refuted the allegations and told mid-day, "As soon as we were informed about the blaze, we rushed to the spot. We deployed six fire engines and four water tankers. Seven shops have been totally gutted, some others around it have suffered damages, too. As per initial investigations, a short circuit may have caused the fire."
BEST to blame?
Shop owners are blaming the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) for the incident. Ravi Gupta, owner of JR Marine services on Reay Road, said, "Two years ago, when shops on this road were facing electricity-related issues, the BEST provided us a temporary connection for which they installed wires and cables above the shops. But, even after that, we kept reporting many short circuit-like incidents. The BEST never gave us a permanent solution, and we are suffering due to it today."
